Khan turns on the power

Khan decked his brave opponent three times in a frenetic round before referee Mickey Vann had seen enough seven seconds from the end of the round, waving the contest off to give Khan his 17th straight win.

The Bolton fighter had been told to impress by promoter Frank Warren in order to land a world title crack later this and the 21-year-old responded with a competent performance which showed he still has a lot to learn.

Whether Warren is now confident enough to step up his claims for crack at WBO champion Nate Campbell, who stunned Juan Diaz to win the crown last month, remains to be seen.

But Khan certainly proved he is arguably the most explosive lightweight fighter on the planet in the way he smashed Kristjansen to the canvas from a big right hand then followed up ruthlessly to finish the job.

The 30-year-old Dane, who came into the fight with a modest record of 19 wins from 24 fights including just five inside the distance, did better than expected against an opponent clearly destined for greater things.

In the end, he presented much more of a test than Gairy St Clair, the previous Khan victim who stepped in earlier this year when Kristjansen caught flu, only to lose all 12 rounds. And he forced Khan into some errors, catching him with a couple of solid right hands which will provide a timely reminder to Khan he will not have it all his own way en route to the top.

If the pressure was on Khan to impress against an opponent few expected to provide him with any problems, he did not show it as he entered the ring focused and evidently intent on another quickfire win.

Khan gradually cranked up the pace during the first three minutes, landing a looping left hook before impatience briefly got the better of him and allowed Kristjansen to respond with a solid right.

The Dane had to count on all his experience to wriggle his way out of trouble after coming under a sustained attack in round two but at least he was making Khan think his way towards a seemingly inevitable 17th victory.